A predilection to stand and stare (probably after a lengthy 'tramp' along country roads) lay at W.H. (William) Davies's very core – and, possibly, within his genes as well. His paternal grandfather (a seafaring man who'd risen to captain his own ship – and who'd played a large part in the future poet's upbringing) would, in his retirement, gaze at the sea for hours on end: noting changes in the conditions. His grandson shared much of that old sailor's wanderlust, as well as some of his stoicism.

After a slightly delinquent youth spent in his birthplace at Newport, south Wales, Davies found the prospect of 'settling down' into a regular pattern of paid employment distinctly unappetising. He'd 'taken to the road' following an apprenticeship in picture-framing, and his consequent travels would find him, by turns, begging his way around Britain; herding sheep in freighters across the Atlantic; getting himself intentionally arrested into American jails (one method of sitting-out the inclement winters) and 'hobo-ing' his way towards the Klondike gold rush by methodically jumping trains. It was this latter adventure which had cost him his lower right leg in March, 1899, after an ill-timed leap. Thereafter fitted with a series of wooden legs, Davies's peregrinations had not ceased entirely – merely slowed down a little.

Written at 45 London Road, Sevenoaks, Kent, TN13 1AR

A born raconteur, Davies – a diminutive man sporting a distinctive quiff, which people were inclined to mistake for a toupee - wrote his 'break-through' Autobiography of a Super-Tramp after encouragement from a new friend, Edward Thomas. The well-known playwright George Bernard Shaw was enlisted to contribute an introduction – he would also suggest a title and recommend the eventual publishing firm. The Autobiography was an instant success, opening a new world for its author. Its royalties enabled Davies to move to 45, London Road, Sevenoaks, Kent – where 'Leisure' was most likely written. He was to lodge there for the three years from 1911. A turn of the century building described as 'handsome' and sandwiched between two shops, the house was owned by a local businessman, Henry Martin. Davies already knew the area quite well, having previously lived nearby in a cheap two-room farm cottage found (and subsidised) for him by Thomas.